Thursday

I was pleased to see that a version of very low fat "Lighter Ranch Dip" appears in the current edition of "Everyday Food" magazine because I practically gag on the synthetic taste of the commercial low-fat Ranch Dressing. I made the EF recipe, and although it is simple to make and healthy it seemed to be lacking flavor, and understandably so ~ that version is seasoned with only thyme leaves, garlic and salt and pepper. That's not ranch as we all know it!

It looked like Ranch Dip/Dressing, but I found the taste quite disappointing. So I played around with the recipe a bit and arrived at my own version which I think is infinitely more flavorful. It requires just a couple of additional ingredients, but those don't add any calories, just more flavor.

While the original recipe called for low-fat Greek-style yogurt, and whole fat mayonnaise ~ I used 0% fat Greek-style yogurt (Fage brand), and Best Foods/Hellman's low fat mayonnaise, further trimming the fat to less than 30 calories, and negligible fat per each serving size (2 slightly heaping tablespoons each.) Of course you could still use the low fat yogurt and whole fat mayo, and it would still be much lower in fat than traditional Ranch Dip.

The additional seasonings I added were minced chives (green stems of scallions/green onions, finely minced, could be substituted), onion powder, minced parsley, and dried dill weed. I also added a small squeeze of fresh lemon juice (optional.) Just those few ingredients made a huge difference in the appeal of this dip. To change the dip into a dressing, simply thin with low or non-fat milk to achieve the consistency you like.

As suggested in the magazine other uses for the lighter dip are:

Sandwich spread, particularly chicken or turkey sandwiches

Substitute for mayonnaise in tuna or chicken salad

Condiment alongside chicken or fish

Dressing for pasta salad

And there is another delicious way I use this, which I'll share shortly in an upcoming post.

This recipe sounds like it is a really nice way to cut calories & still enjoy the flavors we so love.Thanks for explain the what & whys of how you did it, Mari. I will put the ingredients on my shopping list for next week.

BEAUTIFUL photos, as always! Only YOU could make white dressing & broccoli look so pretty! LOL

5-Star Portobello "Pepper-Steak" ~ Vegetarian

Creative Commons License

Copyrighted Material~

This work is licensed under a Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

Please note: All photos and written material herein are protected by international copyright laws. No material or photos may be reproduced or copied in anyway, including for personal use without prior written permission from me.Please contact me: ( Once Upon A Plate @ gmail DOT com) if you would like permission to copy or use my photos or material. Thank you.

About my recipes ~

Hi and welcome! I'm a long-time cook and tend to improvise often, adjusting recipes to my own taste. Usually I'll describe how I put the dish together so you can make it the way you like it.

I have cataloged some of the recipes in a printable format on my recipe blog, Once Upon a Plate ~ the recipes.Please LEFT-MOUSE click HEREif you would like to see what is available there.

Thank you so much for stopping by, and for any comments you would like to share. I read and appreciate every one! :)